From J.P. Morgan to Mastercard... Global Companies Join XRP Payment Network in Succession

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In 2026, XRP is expanding its institutional adoption across payments, banking, tokenized assets, and global financial infrastructure. With major companies and financial infrastructures including Rakuten, DTCC, UBS, Mastercard, J.P. Morgan, and Moscow Exchange successively showing XRP-related movements, Ripple's expansion into the institutional market is accelerating.

According to cryptocurrency media outlet TheCryptoBasic on May 8 (local time), cryptocurrency exchange Bitrue assessed that 2026 is becoming a turning point for XRP adoption. Bitrue cited new partnerships and integration cases spanning banking, payments, tokenized assets, and global financial infrastructure as evidence.

In Japan, Rakuten Wallet announced XRP integration last April. Users can convert Rakuten Points to XRP, trade XRP directly within the app, and use XRP via Rakuten Pay at over 5 million affiliated stores in Japan. Bitrue believes this introduction could expose Rakuten's 44 million users and a loyalty point ecosystem worth over $23 billion to XRP.

Ripple's institutional expansion also extended to the tokenized securities sector. On May 4, Ripple joined the tokenized securities working group led by the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC). DTCC is known as one of the most influential financial infrastructure organizations worldwide, holding over $114 trillion in assets under custody. This working group plans to support the actual launch of the tokenized real-world asset (RWA) market in 2026.

Russia's largest exchange, the Moscow Exchange, announced the launch of its official XRP price index, MOEXXRP, on May 5. The real-time XRP index is scheduled to go live on May 13. TheCryptoBasic reported that the launch of this index signifies a trend towards increased institutional tracking and and monitoring of the XRP market.

In the Middle East, Ripple achieved a regulatory breakthrough. On May 6, Ripple secured a comprehensive license from the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The approval from the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) covers payments, custody, crypto token activities, and money transmission services. This license is regarded as a foundation to strengthen Ripple's position in cross-border payment corridors in the Middle East and surrounding regions.

Swiss banking giant UBS recently disclosed its exposure to XRP investment products through its U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission 13F filing. The held products include Grayscale XRP Trust and Volatility Shares XRP ETF. TheCryptoBasic reported that global investment bank Goldman Sachs also recently disclosed XRP exposure through ETFs, indicating a continuing trend of institutional investors increasing their access to XRP investment products.

The most notable development is a pilot for tokenized U.S. Treasury settlement involving Ondo Finance, Ripple, Mastercard, and J.P. Morgan Kinexys. Conducted on May 6, this pilot processed the cross-border redemption of tokenized U.S. Treasuries, known as OUSG, on the XRP Ledger almost in real-time. Ondo redeemed tokenized Treasuries on-chain, Mastercard routed the transaction, and J.P. Morgan utilized 24-hour infrastructure to process the fiat settlement component in seconds.

The XRP Ledger is being tested in real institutional payment use cases, including tokenized assets and cross-border payments. TheCryptoBasic reported that in 2026, XRP-related adoption trends are simultaneously expanding across banking, payments, tokenized assets, exchange indices, and regulatory licenses.

*Disclaimer: This article is for investment reference only, and we are not responsible for any investment losses based on it. The content should be interpreted for informational purposes only.*